My Little Pony: The Seventh Element
by Justaboredpersonlol
Summary: Brandon Ashford, a product of the super-soldier 'Paladin Project', has been transported to Equestria through the combined efforts of Twilight Sparkle and Princess Celestia. When his dad's army threatens to conquer Equestria, he has to save himself, his sister, his friends, and the world, all while hoping this adventure will help solve his mother's murder. Some Brandon x Fluttershy
1. Chapter 1

**A little Author's note. This is my first time writing something that wasn't for school. So keep in mind, I'm open to CRITICISM. Not hate. This is going to be...kind of odd. But I'll have some fun writing it. Enjoy!**

_**In Fluttershy's Cottage, the mane 6 is swarming her couch, looking at something she found in the woods. A young adult human with blond hair, blue eyes. They were supposedly to have just dissapeared when Celestia and Luna first came into power.**_

"What in tha' world is THAT?!" Applejack was the first to speak...she had to break the silence somehow.

"I don't know! I just found him there. I was feeding my squirrel friends and I heard someone screaming repeatedly. I thought somepony was in trouble! I kept running until I found him unconcious...I didn't know what else to do!"  
Rarity looked at the new specimen's green jacket...she couldn't decide if it was hideous or if it was some-what decent..."Has it moved at all?"  
"2 days ago he opened his eyes and just started crying...he didn't do anything but that and went back to sleeping-"  
Applejack immidieatley interrupted "-TWO days?! How long has it been here?!"  
"...a week, maybe." Fluttershy responded quietley. She felt bad about hiding it, but she wanted to make sure it was allright and friendly before she showed it to her friends. Rainbow Dash was furious at her response "It could be dangerous! We don't know what it is!"

Pinkie Pie joined in "It could EAT EVERYTHING. AGAIN!"

Dash sighed...Pinkie obviously wasn't taking this seriously "No, it won't eat everything."  
"You don't know that! It could release a poison that kills us all!"  
"For the love of Celestia, stop talking. Please."

Twilight was the only one staying quiet, she was too immersed in finding out more about this thing. So many questions went through her head. _What does it eat? Can it talk? Is it sentient? What's with all of the clothes? _But, she remembered that the safety of Equestria is more important than finding out this new creature's eating habits.

"I'll send a letter to the Princess. She has to know something about this."  
Fluttershy was nervous. What if it is dangerous? It just looked like something that needed help. She finally spoke again, "I'm sorry...I didn't think it was that big of a deal..."

Twilight looked at her with a reassuring smile, "You didn't do anything wrong. Next time you see something like this tell us, ok?"  
"Ok..."

Rainbow Dash looked at the new House Guest's wrist...something on it was blinking. "Hey! What's that on his arm?"

Pinkie started panicking "IT'S THE SIGNAL. WE'RE ALL DOOMED-"

Rainbow was irritated beyond belief "BE QUIET."

"Uh, should we touch it?" Applejack questioned, actually worried Pinkie might be right. Fluttershy wasn't really scared of it. It hadn't hurt her, it didn't seem bad. "I'll do it," she volunteered, praying to the Princesses it didn't trigger some awful reaction.

Without thinking, she pressed it, terrified of what might happen.

A smaller creature popped up, it was white, glowing, and transparent. It was shaped like the one on the couch, but much smaller.  
"Hello. I am VI. an Artificial Intelligence from-...Excuse me, but I do not recognize you in any of the Paladin's Databanks. Accessing files relevant to the disocovery of new species."  
Twilight just felt the biggest sense of happiness "Whoa! What are you? How can we understand you? New species! This is amazing!"  
"You understand me?"  
"Yes!"  
"Acknowledged. How may I assist?"  
Rarity tried to ask, but Twilight interrupted before she could get a word in "Can you tell me what this is? What you are? How you got here?"  
VI was curious about their behavior, but did not know if he should answer everything..."You are seeing a member of the Super-Soldier Military Branch, simply dubbed as 'The Paladin Project.' I am VI, an Artificial Intelligence, I was partnered with Paladin Ashford in order to support his equipment and armor supplements, I basically assist in any way I can."  
Twilight was overjoyed, each word the small, transparent man spoke generated endless questions! There was no way she could ask everything, but she'd try as hard as possible. She began her next question "The Paladin Project, what is-"  
Fluttershy decided to butt in, "What's wrong with him? Why won't he wake up?"  
VI shooked his head..."Paladin Ashford has experienced severe amount of emotional trauma. 7 days and 12 hours ago, he led a personal mission with Paladin Washington and Holy Knight Ayala. During the mission...he lost someone very dear to him. He was still getting used to our partnership...and there is no telling how the cross between realms affected him. I will try to awake him as soon as possible."

He dissapeared. They waited for hours, but no sign of the human waking up anytime soon. Everypony left, but Fluttershy just kept waiting. She decided to go to bed. She said goodnight to all of her animal friends and settled down in her bed. 2 hours past and she heard rattling coming from the living room. She was excited and terrified at the same time.

She was greeted with the strange being about to leave. "Wait! Don't go!" He stopped and took his hands off the door, keeping his back turned to her. The young man just waited in silence until the shy pegasus spoke again "Are you feeling allright, Paladin?" she asked, thinking it was his name.  
"...I'm fine." his voice was that expected of someone only 19 years old. It was average. Nothing unusual about it. She wanted to make friends, and could tell something was wrong with him. "You can stay here if you like. I've been taking really good care of you!"  
"No, thanks. I have to go somewhere." he said coldly and objectively. He was still hurt, just from the way he held himself, she had to get him to stay. He could die if she didn't! "Please! Whoever or whatever you're looking for won't do you any good if you're still hurt! Just stay the night."  
VI became visible, seeing as how Fluttershy was right, "She is correct, Paladin Ashford. If Elizabeth is in trouble, then you are in no condition to help her. You would be useless."

He thought for a moment...three, actually until he realized his computer friend and the quiet voice behind him was right.  
"Fine. I'll stay for the night. But the second the sun comes up, I'm searching for my little sister." He shut the door slowly, head still lowered.  
Fluttershy was pretty happy to hear this news. She's never lost a patient yet! "Oh, good! My name is Fluttershy. I already know yours, Paladin."  
"What? 'Fluttershy'? What kind of name is that-" he turned around and didn't see a human girl behind him, who he expected..he saw a yellow pegasus with a pink mane and teal eyes.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?" He screamed, horrified, shocked, confused, just the normal reaction you'd have when you see a bright yellow pegasus standing behind you.

VI appeared before him, he's been analyzing Fluttershy's every moves and was hoping to calm the confused boy.

"Paladin Ashford...allow us to explain."

**Well, what did you think? Sorry it was a long read and know it needs some work, but I'm hoping to make it into a series. I have a plot all lined out, basically. A HUMAN IN EQUESTRIA, wow. That's never been done before. /sarcasm. Something I've been wanting to post for a while, actually. I'm going to try my best to improve my storywriting. Like I said, it's my first time.**


	2. Chapter 2

_Dear Princess Celestia,  
I suppose you have already heard about our newest visitor, Brandon Ashford. He's had a pretty bad case of amnesia, though. All he remembers is that his little sister is here somewhere. I don't know what he is, but he's been really friendly and has been helping around Ponyville ever since his appearance, a month ago. So far, he's successfully helped all of my friends, and all of the 'icons' in our little village. He even stopped a robbery at Sugarcube Corner, without laying a finger on the robber! All he asks in return is we send out a search team in the Everfree Forest, where he believes his younger sister is in. I know you're busy, but is there a reason you haven't responded to my letters? I've been trying to contact you since he appeared, but you've never replied back. Maybe Spike's Scroll Transporting magic is a bit off. Sincerely, Your most faithful student, Twilight Sparkle._

"This is such BULLSHIT!" Brandon screamed as he entered to little cottage, not caring that he'd trip over the animals eating a midnight snack. Fluttershy was reading a magazine that Lotus and Aloe let her borrow, since she is a friend of one of their greatest paying customers. She timidly asked, "Oh, you still can't find her?" as he took a seat next to her on the couch, looking pissed beyond belief. "It's been 3 weeks since we started looking. She's probably died of thirst, or starvation, or got eaten by one of the monsters. And I'm powerless to do anything." Fluttershy tried to calm him down by wrapping her arms around him, "You'll find her," she said sweetley, "you have to believe she's allright. If you give up, she might as well be dead." He was thankful for her attempt at reassurance, but was still pretty pissed, "Lizzie is all I have left. She's only 11 years old, Shy, she can't defend herself." She didn't know what else to say. Each night he came home like this and each night he became worse. All she could do was nuzzle her face against his shoulder. Thoughts crawled through her head like little bugs. _I wonder what I should say to him. I think I actually like doing this. What are we going to do if he can't find her? Or if she does wind up dead? What will he do? Will he go back home? I'm so scared.  
_

Without thinking, or even knowing it, she kissed him on the cheek, to her surprise and to his. _Oh no! What did I do? Did I...? I've never really done that before! What if he hates me now?! _Brandon just regarded it as some new method of calming him down. Part of him didn't think anything of it, though another part sort of enjoyed it. As she turned away to hide the fact she was blushing and crying, he put his arm around her and gave her a hug, "Thanks. For helping me." She was smiling, but her head was still turned. _I actually liked doing that, _she thought. Probably a secret she'd take to her grave. Finally, turning her head back toward him, they looked at eachother and realized they both were crying and laughed at it, even though they were crying about two completely different things. They hugged again, this time with a little more emotion. _Maybe he likes me...? If so, then he'll...  
_"Hey, Shy?" still hugging, so she couldn't tell what expression he was making. "Yes?" She responded, quietly. "Have you ever thought of..." _What'll he ask? What will I say? Say it! Come on! Say it!_ But, their moment was interrupted by a shouting voice, coming over Ponyville's PA system, which they rarely used, only for reminders on town events and for calling parents to recover unattended children who lost them in a crowd or something.  
"**I WANT MEN ON EVERY CORNER OF THE TOWN. LET NO ONE OUT. WE DO NOT LEAVE WITHOUT THE DATA. FIND PALADIN ASHFORD. LET'S GO, GO, GO! HUDDLE EVERYONE UP! I WANT EYES ON EVERY HORSE IN TOWN."  
**That voice had never been heard before. It sounded serious. Concerned, Fluttershy asked, "Who is that? What's happening?" turning to Brandon who had this horrified look on his face.  
"Fluttershy...stay here. I'll be right back."


	3. Chapter 3

Everypony was there. Everypony in Ponyville was at the town hall, whether voluntarily or rushed out by one of the many men in black suits of armor. It looked ancient and futuristic at the same time. The man leading them had a deep voice, it was angry, fierce, and he looked pretty scary. He was in a suit of armor, too, but it was more buff than the others.  
**"I want you all to hear me. We know you are harboring the one you call 'Paladin Ashford.' He is an ENEMY of the Holy Nation of Patensia. He has disgraced the Royal Family and he will face the charges! WE HAVE STUDIED HIM SINCE HE APPEARED HERE. HE IS NOT WHAT YOU THINK HE IS."**

****The whole town erupted into disbelief. Every pony asked a series of questions to the one next to them "What? Enemy of a nation?" "What did he do?" "Do you think this guy is telling the truth?"

**"You do not know what he's done? Who here is closely associated with him?" **

****The obvious answer was Fluttershy. They were hardly seen apart, either he's helping her with her animals or shopping or just eating lunch together. But every pony stayed quiet.

**"He is found guilty of murdering High Prince Cornelius. He is guilty for the attempted murder of Princess Maria! He is under the suspicion of murdering his own mother! THIS MAN IS A MONSTER."**

****He wouldn't do that, Fluttershy thought. _Would he? No...No._

Then suddenly, a voice came from behind the crowd.

"That is only partially true." Every pony looked around to find that the voice was the voice of Brandon, but when they looked to see where it was coming from all they saw was a silver figure, on top of Carrot Top's roof. Was that Brandon?

"I admit to the murder of Prince Cornelius and Princess Maria, but my mother's crime was done by another."

**"You admit those crimes? You stupid boy! You just confessed to murdering royalty with 20 men, all with automatic weapons, ALL pointed at you."**

****The silver figure didn't budge. Stayed in that exact same position. The full-body armor made the facial expressions invisible. Nobody knew what he felt.

"I only committed those crimes because of the fact they were behind the Genocide of Morte. Hundreds of thousands of lives lost because they wouldn't succumb to our nation's threats."

**"No matter what you say, you can't get out of this. Ready? OPEN FIRE, MEN."**

****All in an instant, muzzle flashes, the loud crackling noises coming from their machines, the screams of horror as the silver figure was forced off the roof and into Carrot Top's garden.

All they could do was watch.


	4. Chapter 4

When the silver figure finally fell, the bullets stopped, the noise stopped. It was quiet. Every pony was in shock at what they just witnessed. A member of their community was just brutally murdered right in front of them. The quiet was interrupted by the cheering soldiers, congratulating eachother on a job well done.  
The only sound coming from the crowd of ponies was the screaming and crying of Fluttershy, everyone else either softly cried or bowed their heads.  
So much was going on. The human soldiers cheering over their victory, the unidentified man laughing, taking delight in his own evil, Fluttershy screaming with rage and overwhelming feelings of sadness. She lost her best friend, the only one in the world who would stay up all night atleast once a week and just talk. She thinks that she...loved him.

"**Good job, men! Way to unload every bullet your clip owns into that traitorous monster! ALL HAIL PATENSIA."  
**The soldiers turned around to their leader, rejoicing in cheers of "All hail Patensia!"  
Fluttershy just cried and cried. All of the mane six cried, but Fluttersy cried to loudest. The thoughts running through her mind  
_I can't believe he lied to me. What about Lizzie? Was he really thinking he did the right thing? Why didn't I tell_ him-

Screams interrupted her thoughts. Not screams of agony, but screams of surprise. Not from a pony. The soldiers were screaming!  
She heard a scream, smack, and thud. By the time she turned around, 5 soldiers were on the ground, dead or unconcious, she couldn't tell.  
One of the soldier's last words were "What the f-" before that crackling sound and that burst of light coming from those weapons fired earlier killed him, spilling blood. But they all noticed something in that burst of light. Long-ish blond hair! He's alive!  
The man soon realized this, and ordered his men to retreat.  
**"It was a decoy! Fall back! COVER ME! FALL BACK!" **He took off with a couple of the soldiers behind them, a couple of them being shot by Brandon.

"Well," he said, reloading his weapon and taking off his helmet, "I finally remembered...**everything."**

_**[Later in the Library]**_

The Paladin removed his armor, in a kind of ashamed tone he asked, "So...I suppose there's no way you guys just ignored what he was saying?"  
Fluttershy looked at him, eyes watering "You're a murderer..." Defensivley, he told them "No, it's not like that. Let me explain-"  
"Explain?!" Applejack yelled so furiously, her hat flew off her head for a second, "Why don't you explain why you killed them! That ain't somethin' to keep secrets about." He tried to keep a calm tone, but the irritation he felt was unbearable, "I sort of had amnesia for a few weeks. Maybe you forgot? Now let me explain everything. My family was nobility. There was me, my little sister, Elizabeth, my mom, and my dad. My dad was very high up with His Majesty, he was his right hand man. When I was 9 years old, my mother was murdered by an unidentified gunman. I knew in my heart it was the Emperor, 63rd ruler, Septimus di Patensia. My sister and I confronted father about this. The result was our banishment. We lived on our own until I had a run in with Paladin Kiragin, during a terrorist raid. After I saved his life, his boss, the Overseer, heard the story. And he offered me and my sister complete protection as long as I followed his every order. Just before I came here, I learned my sister had been captured, so I got two of my squadmates to go with me. The man you saw out there, Magnus, he was the one who captured Lizzie as an attempt to lure me. When I got there, he was working on some Universe-traveling device, to make the Holy Patensian Empire a supreme nation. I fired and...now I'm here."

Twilight processed all of the information...somehow that device worked in ties with the spell that she cast the night Brandon first showed up. She finally had something to say, "And that guy out there...Magnus, was it? Why did he want you?" Brandon was reluctant to say, but felt he had to, "He's my dad. Listen, I'm really tired...I'll answer all of your questions tomorrow morning, but can I just go home? Plus, I need to get VI out of that decoy of me I had. How else do you think I'd make my voice come from that?"  
Twilight looked suspicious, but realized she couldn't ask anything else. "Sure," she said, "be here tomorrow morning."  
"Allright," he said. Fluttershy following him.

They walked in silence on the way home. He felt bad, he never meant to hurt anyone...especially Fluttershy. He tried to start a conversation with her, but all she would do is mumble something and look at the ground. Finally approaching the cottage, he decided to ask for forgiveness. "Shy, I'm really sorry about all of this. I just wanted to find my sister. Won't you say anything to me?"  
_I should say something to him...I should tell him...but...why...? What if he doesn't? But what if he does? He could-...I need to tell him._

"Brandon..." the yellow pegasus said, barely audible, eyes ready to pour out with tears. "I have to tell you something...you need to promise not to laugh at me, though. Do you promise? Please!" she got close to him, tears flowing out of her eyes, their faces just an inch away from eachother. He held her, he knew something was upsetting her, but he had no idea what. "I promise. You can tell me anything. Ok? Just tell me what's on your mind," wiping her tears. He knew he did something wrong.  
She broke the hug, she wanted to see his face when she said it.

"I...um...I...I think I..."


	5. Chapter 5

Rarity sat in her home multitasking between designing a new dress and reviewing the whole night in her head. _It's missing just one more thing...what could it be?...Hm...I wonder how this would look in yellow?  
_"Sis...?" Sweetie Belle asked quietly. Rarity forgot that the Cutie Mark Crusaders were sleeping over tonight. "Is Brandon...bad?" Rarity looked surprised, "No. Why would you say that?" The three fillies looked at eachother, not wanting to say but knew that had no choice. Applebloom decided to confess, "We know you told us to stay in. But we just couldn't! We thought it was some sorta' Adventure!" Scootaloo joined in, ashamed as the rest, "But then we heard Brandon's name, and we snuck out. We thought we could help him remember! Maybe it had something to do with his sister!" Sweetie Belle finished their confession off, "But then we heard the things he did...good guys don't become enemy of a whole empire!"  
Rarity's heart was broken. The Cutie Mark Crusaders invited Brandon into their club, him being Cutie Mark-less. He explained over and over that he won't ever get a Cutie Mark, but they just took that as a bout of poor self-worth.

Sometimes Rarity can be a beyotch, but when her big sister instincts kick in then she is probably the best one in the room. She gave them all a reassuring smile "Sweetie...Brandon isn't the bad one, it was those royals who were bad. They killed a lot of innocent bystanders because they wouldn't give in to the empire. Do you remember that robbery at Sugarcube Corner?" "Yes," Sweetie Belle said, not real sure why this was relevant, "he took the money and ran." Rarity looked pleased, "Right! Do you know who stopped him?" "The wall?" Scootaloo asked, just recalling what Pinkie Pie said. Rarity took a breath and said "That's...partially true. Do you remember who caused the robber to run into the wall?" "Derpy?" "No." "Lyra!" Applebloom chimed in, thinking she was right. "No," Rarity replied plainly. Sweetie Belle thought she knew, "Wasn't it Cheerilee?" "Ok, just listen and I'll tell you. No more guesses. Brandon did it. He stopped the robber. Because he's good. You're too young to understand everything, and killing is wrong no matter what. But he did it to stop other innocent bystanders from dying. Do you understand?" She asked, praying that they did. "I guess so." Sweetie Belle firmly said. Applebloom and Scootaloo nodded their heads in agreement. Rarity smiled, "Good. Now give me a few minutes and I'll be downstairs with some popcorn while you three go play a game." The fillies left smiling. Rarity finished her dress designs wondering if she even believed herself.


	6. Chapter 6

_Dear Twilight Sparkle,  
I'm sorry if I haven't responded to your letters. My sister and I have been busy. I need you and your friends to get to Canterlot as soon as possible. The Paladin included. It's urgent.  
_

"Shy, what's wrong?" Brandon asked, concerned as to why Fluttershy looked like she was going to explode at any moment. "I...uh...I think I...um...mmmm...I just..." was all she muttered before she started softly sobbing, worrying what he might be thinking. "Hey," he said in a comforting tone, wondering if it was because of all that happened tonight. She did just find out a secret he'd been hoping to keep. The Paladin got on his knees and hugged her, stroked her neck. She just kept sobbing.  
"Shy," Brandon said, hoping to comfort her, "I want you to know that I'm sorry if it feels like I lied to you. I did, but I just didn't think it was necessary to tell you yet. I wasn't planning on making my stay here long term. I figured the less you guys know, the better. And to stop the questions, I faked some amnesia. I'm sorry," he said, "Look at me, Shy." She wouldn't. She just kept looking at the ground. "That's not it," she managed to get through her sobs, "I understand why you did that...I hate that you did, but I understand." Brandon smiled. He was worried that his closest friend hated him now. "Well, if that's not it, then what? You can tell me. But first, do you want to get off the floor? My knees are starting to hurt." She chuckled and nodded, "I forgot about our...size difference." She said as they sat on the couch. The second they sat down, he wiped her tears, still unsure as to why she was crying. "Now tell me...what's wrong?" "Oh, it's...nothing," trying to lay off her confession just a little while longer. "Don't give me that bull. Now tell me," ending the sentence with putting his hand on her hoof, instantly making the pegasus blush. _Is he...? Does this mean...? Think, Fluttershy. Pros and Cons. Pros and Cons. Pros: New boyfriend. First boyfriend. You can stop feeling bad. More self confidence. Cons: He could laugh at me. Hate me. Word would get out. Forced to live as a loner. Oh, I can't do this! Every pony will think it's weird! I'm a pony...and he's a..._  
"Whatever it is, you can tell me," he said reassuringly as he kissed her on the forehead, making her turn into a shade of red that Brandon didn't even know existed. "I promise I won't laugh at you."  
She sniffled, "Pinkie promise." No way he would say that promise, so as a compromise he told her "I'll add my own. Cross my heart, hope to die, eat a thousand needles if I lie." Fluttershy looked quizzical at that 'promise'. "What?" Brandon asked, "Don't look at me like that. I'd rather eat a thousand needles than stick a cupcake in my eye." She thought he was joking and chuckled shyly, but it took a bit to figure out he was serious. "Ok. I'll tell you." "Good."  
Fluttershy took a deep breath. She was blushing, crying, sweating, and finally said, eyes closed...  
"...I think...that I have a crush on you."  
She was terrified of what he might say. _Good job, Fluttershy. You royally screwed up our friendship.  
_She couldn't hear anything. No gasp, just him breathing, maybe a chuckle. _Oh, great. He's laughing at me._ Fluttershy decided to get it over with now and hopefully it'll be over soon. Brandon started chuckling. Chuckling?! Fluttershy was furious. "YOU PROMISED ME YOU WOULDN'T LAUGH!" She opened her eyes and was ready to tear him apart. But before she said anything else, she looked at his face. It wasn't red with laughter...it was embarassment! He was blushing! Those chuckles weren't teasing, they were nervous. He finally spoke, "Wow...uh..." Fluttershy was still confused, but atleast he wasn't laughing at her. "You're not going to laugh at me? No cries of digust? You're not even going to take your hand off my hoof?" She expected these things, replaying different scenarios of how he makes fun of her for it in her head. "No. Of course not. Because I think I feel the same way," he smiled, looking at her.  
"What?" Fluttershy asked, in disbelief. "Yeah. I like your smile, your mannerisms, your voice, the way you help anything regardless how dangerous it could be. I also think you're...really pretty. Hell, you saved me when you didn't even know what I was. For all you guys knew, I could've released a poison to kill you all. Why did you save me?"  
Fluttershy was still thinking of everything he just said. _My smile? My voice? He thinks I'm pretty?_  
"I...just saw you needed help. For the first week, I just thought of you as some other animal. But, then I got to know you, what you liked, that you had a family. I knew I had some feelings for you...but didn't fully realize it until tonight. When I thought you were dead...I couldn't stand the thought that you died and I didn't tell you. You don't know how happy this makes me," she jumped foward to hug him, different then how they normally hugged. She actually hugged as hard as possible, without hurting him. Brandon was just wondering this, "So, have you ever had a boyfriend?" Fluttershy replied "Well...not a real one. The only boyfriend I ever had was back at Flight School kindergarten, when one kid decided he liked the snack my mom packed for me." "But, somebody had to have atleast tried to get to know you?" Her answer didn't make much sense...seriously, no one? "Someponies are too afraid to approach the shy mare who spends all of her time with animals. Most stallions want more outgoing girls, who care more about makeup. I tried to get into it, but I love my animals so much. I never really even thought about dating any pony, my animals were enough for me. How about you?" Shocked that she asked question back, "Well," he said, "There was this one girl named Allison. We didn't last too long. I knew a girl named Margaret. Also didn't last long. But, they were different. They were more about what you just described. Plus, they were...kind of bitchy, considering all of them are Paladins. We tend to have a...what you would call a jack-ass personality sometimes."  
Fluttershy chuckled at the joke, but once again realized he was serious. She then timidly asked, "So...does this mean I'm your girlfriend now?" "No," he said, "not yet atleast."  
"But, we already told eachother how we felt. What else do we have to..." Brandon gave her a "you know" look, and she did. Her eyes got wide and she started blushing again, "OH...oh...are you sure you want to...? I could be bad...I don't know if I'd be any good at-"  
"Shy, stop talking. You're ruining this," he smiled, and leaned in. She didn't know what do do, so she just sat there, waiting.  
They kissed, and held the kiss until they both got out of their trance, which took about a good five seconds. Both of them were silent, just looking at eachother, amazed that they actually did that.  
Surprisingly, Fluttershy was the first to speak up, "Wow...that was...d-did I do it right? It wasn't bad, was it?" she was actually concerned, but couldn't stop smiling. "No, Shy...it was great," he replied, easing her worries.  
"Can we do that again?" Fluttershy asked, her face matching her mane.  
"Yeah, Shy. We can do that whenever you want."  
They leaned in and kissed again.  
Thankfully they have eachother for the problems they'll face during the oncoming week.


	7. Chapter 7

_Dear Luna,_

_It seems we have trouble coming our way. Let's hope that spell summoned the right one. How are things on your end? Did you get what we needed? There's going to be a bad result if we don't pull this off right. We're going to answer every question he has truthfully, agreed? Stay safe, my little sister._

_-Celestia_

__Fluttershy woke up, slowly. Did last night really happen? She's alone in her bed, even though last night they slept in the same bed, no dirty stuff. _I knew it. Too good to be true. _

__The shy mare worked her way downstairs, when she smelled something. From the kitchen?

"OW! SON OF A BITCH!" She heard Brandon yell from the kitchen, she ran in, only to find him with a waffle-iron shaped burn on his hand. "Are you ok?!"

"Oh...good morning, beautiful," he said, forcing a smile, trying to ignore the fact that he could play tic-tac-toe on the back of his hand. She also forgot Brandon's hand was hurt, she just kept replaying those words in her head. _Good morning, beautiful? Wow. So, last night DID happen. _

__"I...uh, tried to surprise you with eggs and a waffle. The eggs turned out ok, but...yeah. Sorry." He said before he kissed her. She kissed back, thanking Celestia, Luna, or whoever is in charge of fate that everything that happened was real.

"It's ok. The eggs look good, at least." Fluttershy said cheerily, while grabbing a couple of plates from the cabinet. "It's a pretty day. Do you want to eat outside?"

"Sure," the paladin said, "I'll meet you outside...I just need to treat this burn first."

They ate their eggs outside and just talked. Who knows what of. She just finished a really bad joke, something about a griffin and a unicorn walking into a bakery. She thought it was pretty funny, but he was just laughing at how cute she was laughing at her own joke. "I have one," Brandon told her, wondering if she'd believe everything he said. "Two humans walk into a bar. The first human says to then second, 'Wow, I like your shoelaces.' and he laughed and said, 'Thanks! I stole them from the emperor." Fluttershy had no idea what he was talking about. "That was a joke." He told her, blankly. "Oh!" She then started chuckling, trying not to hurt his feelings, "Good one. Yeah..." "Actually, Shy, that's not a real joke. The joke is now on you. You'll believe anything!" He explained as he chuckled to himself. They both smiled, and kissed again.

The second they did, they heard some familiar voice yell "WHOA!" As she came down to the ground, revealing Rainbow Dash to be the voice. "Uh...What were you guys...? You know what, never mind, this is more important. Twilight needs all of us to meet at the train station. She says its important! Get ready for your first trip to Canterlot, Brandon!" She yelled as she took off again.

They all met at the train station at around the same time. buying their tickets and boarding the train.

_Dear Celestia,_

_This could be worse than we imagined. I have the girl under Shining Armor's guard, so she's safe. The guards are asking questions, I can't tell them what could happen, even we are not sure. Be careful, sister. We might be entering dark times._

_-Luna_


	8. Chapter 8

The gang has made it inside the castle, on their way to see the Princess, when they are stopped by two royal guards. "Halt! Who goes there?" They both asked, in sync. "Twilight Sparkle. Princess Celestia asked to see us," Twilight answered, hoping to see what was going on as soon as possible. "The Princess is in her private chambers and has asked not to be-"  
"That's quite all right, men. Let them in," a regal voice came from the door behind them. The six ponies and one human all walked in, it's been awhile since Brandon was last in a palace. Eh, not that impressive, he thought. "Hello, girls! And...boy. I'm glad you could all come here," So, this was Princess Celestia, huh? Brandon imagined someone more...shorter. "So, you're Paladin Ashford. It's great to finally meet you," she said in a tone that sounded to sweet to be true, as she held our her hoof. "Uh, thanks," he shook her hoof with a little difficulty, "You can just call me Brandon, though." Twilight Sparkle didn't want introductions to be made just yet, she wanted to get straight to the point, "Why did you summon us?"  
Princess Celestia looked grim, like she didn't want to share the news. "I'm afraid the whole world is in danger. Not just Equestria." This news made Fluttershy go pale, "Wh-what kind of danger?" She asked, timidly scooting close to her new boyfriend, hoping for comfort. "We should all sit down. This is going to be quite a long story.  
They all met in a room where the Princesses and generals meet in times of danger, which is actually rarely.  
"Twilight, do you know of the Scroll of the Queen?" Twilight nodded, "I think I've heard about it. She was your mother. She could predict the future, right?" the Celestial Princess chuckled, she knew she trained her student well. "Yes, that's right. My mother knew every hour of every day, and wrote all times of danger down, which is why our world is rarely attacked. The Scroll of the Queen says that the next week will be the end of Equestria, then the world." They all gasped, what could they say? The Princess just continued on.  
"The book states that there is a great possibility the Equestrian Kingdom could come to an end, when the Inimicus attack." Brandon's eyes widened, he got up and interupted, "That's the name of Patensia's army. That's impossible. There's no way the Queen could've known about that, even if she-"  
"Brandon, do you know much about Equestrian history?" She inquired, seemed like she was making a point. "No, ma'am. Just about the Founders, but that's about it," he said, almost defeated.  
Princess Celestia took a breath, "Well, there is a part of the story we like to leave out. The only one's alive today who know this tale are myself and my sister, Luna. A long time ago, when he Queen ruled, Humans and Ponies lived happily together. In peace and harmony, treating eachother no different. But then, the humans got restless, they felt as though the Queen was treating the ponies better than the humans, and rebelled. The Queen's army couldn't defeat the humans, no matter how powerful she was. Since there are more of them, and less of her. So, in a desperate attempt, she summoned a spell to transport all humans to the land you know of as Earth." Everyone's eyes were about to pop out of their head. Brandon was probably taking it worse, "What...you mean that..." the huge revelation was overwhelming. Princess Celestia continued on, "Humans and Ponies used to live together. Why do you think our traditions and inventions are alike? It explains perfectly why we speak the same language." Applejack was the first to bring up, "So that's what happened to all tha' humans. They weren't destroyed, or ran away. They were banished!" Celestia nodded, "Yes. The leader of the rebellion was who you know as the first emperor of Patensia. I assume he passed on the tale, and is going to exact his revenge. If he gets a hold of our kingdom, then there is no stopping him." Rainbow Dash still needed to say, "Well, what does Brandon have to do with any of this?"  
"Twilight, so you remember the spell I asked you to cast a month ago?" Twilight nodded, "You were very precise about the time and date. The Princess stated, "Yes. Because at the same time, I would be performing that same spell. Our combined magic was able to bring Brandon here instead of dying in that explosion. Unfortunatley it worked for Magnus, too."  
Brandon stood up from his seat, "You mean you saved me!? Why the hell didn't you save Lizzie as well!? She's just a child! If you knew when I was going to be there, WHY DIDN'T YOU DO ANYTHING FOR LIZZIE?!" He sat back in his seat, sobbing, knowing his little sister met her end at Magnus' base.  
"Brandon," Princess Celestia said as she walked up to him, "You are the 7th Element of Harmony. The Element of Courage. Courage to fight, though everything is gone. Courage is strength in the heart. You must go up to this task. I know in your heart you haven't lost everything. There is still someone in this room who you love dearly." Brandon knew who she was talking about. He glanced at Fluttershy and the look on her face said she knew, too. "I accept this task...I'll stop my father. For Lizzie."  
Princess Celestia chuckled at his sudden mood change, "Good. Equestria thanks you. And to keep you motivated..." she looked out the door, "Luna, you can bring her in now!" She yelled to her sister out in the hall.  
In walked dark-coated Princess Luna. She seemed expressionless. But there was someone behind her...long, dark hair, blue eyes, wearing a cute dress...Oh my god...is that...?  
"Hello, big brother. I'm so glad you're still alive!"


	9. Chapter 9

"Lizzie?...Lizzie!" They ran to eachother and hugged, tighter than they've ever hugged before, "I was so scared, Brandon...I thought you died." Lizzie said to him, both of them trying to hold back their tears, but to no avail, "How have they been treating you, Lizzie?" Brandon asked, concerned for his younger sister's well being. "They've been really nice to me. Luna explained everything." Brandon immidiatley asked, "Who's Luna?" Princess Luna approached him and said in a polite tone, "I am. Princess of the Night. You may call me Luna. I have had the great pleasure of watching over this sweet little girl. She has told me many things about you. It is an honor to finally meet you," she smiled. The Paladin just answered with, "Likewise," then looked at Princess Celestia, "When do we hit Magnus?" Princess Celestia lowered her head, "We don't. Not yet, atleast. Just last night when Magnus caused a disruption in Ponyville, a small group of the Inimicus stole the Elements of Harmony. Your job is to retrieve the Elements, along with discovering the Element of Courage. I have some of my men scouting his last known location. I'll send you a letter when we find something. You may all go."

**_[Outside the castle, in the town_**_ square]  
_Rarity studied the little girl, "So, you're Lizzie! You're just adorable! I'm Rarity," she started introducing herself and the others soon followed. Twilight signaled Brandon for him to move away from the crowd for a bit so she could ask something, "Brandon," she said to him, "I'm guessing you're also having trouble with our recent discovery?" It was a pretty big shock to everyone. "Yeah," he replied, "I'm still trying to wrap my head around all of it. But I'm glad Lizzie is allright." She smiled at him, and it faded back into a thought-filled look, "There's actually a few things I wanted to talk to you about," "Ok. Shoot." He told her, not even caring how serious she looked. "First off...can we trust you? We're asking you to fight against your own dad." Brandon's expression didn't change, "Twilight, he's not my dad anymore. No dad would banish their kids when they weren't even in their teens. I was probably going to end up killing him anyway. Now I'm doing it for you guys. You can trust me." Twilight smiled, she knew that she was telling the truth, "and what about you and Fluttershy?" "What about us?" "Don't play dumb. Rainbow Dash saw you kiss. It's nothing to be embarassed about." She tried to make him come out and admit it, and it worked. "Fine. We're boyfriend/girlfriend." "Awwww!" "Twilight!" "Sorry. It's just cute. I guess that means Pinkie won." She said, successfully. He didn't really care. "Yeah, yeah...wait. Won what?" "The bet!...You didn't know?..." Irritated, angry, and curious, he answer her question with an aggravated "No." "Well-" "Let me get this straight. You guys placed a bet on when we were going to start going out?" Twilight realized she should've kept quiet, 'Yes...no?...Which would make you less mad?" "You've got to be freakin' kidding me!" "It wasn't that much! Only 5 bits..." She tried to make it seem like it wasn't a big deal, "Some of us thought you wouldn't even get together!"  
"Thanks," He sarcasticaly replied, "way to make me feel better."


	10. Chapter 10

Every pony made their way back home in Ponyville, taking their turn spending the day with Lizzie. Brandon promised to help Applejack fix a couple of loose boards in her barn, so that meant Lizzie stayed with Twilight and Rarity for the day.  
"Ah got the tools!" Applebloom tried to yell, but hardly could considering she had two hammers and a couple of nails in her mouth. "Good job, Applebloom! Why don't you go get yerself some lemondade?" Applejack told her little sister, who smiled and ran off at the thought of lemonade. They started fixing the loose boards."So," Applejack said to Brandon, trying to start a conversation, "how's Lizzie adjustin' to life in Ponyville?" Brandon was glad she asked that, it was the only question he's been asked that didn't have to do with Fluttershy. Hearing those questions all of the time really got on his nerves. "She's been pretty good. Her and Fluttershy have become like sisters in just 2 days. She really likes every pony here." Applejack responded, "Well, that's good! If ya don't mind me sayin', you an' Fluttershy are adorable together." "Thanks. I only heard that from every one in town." "No problem," she chuckled, "it feels good to finally get you to show some sense of embarassment." He laughed. It was good that no pony thought anything negative of them being together. "Hey, Can you go get a couple of boards? I'm a little busy here." He said to Applejack, who replied with "You get 'em. I can't budge right now." The argument went back and forth, but no one would budge. They soon found a way to settle the agreement, with a game they invented for just this occasion...

**_[At the_**** spa]**  
"Come on, Lizzie! It feels amazing!" Rarity stated as she soaked herself into the hot tub. "Uh...I don't know. It's steaming. It might hurt." She seemed to adopt Fluttershy's mannerisms each hour. "Nonsense! It really relaxes your muscles." Twilight was fast asleep in the tub, Fluttershy was just in her own little world. She became obsessed with Brandon. _I wonder what we'll do tonight. How has his day been? Is he thinkin of me right now? _She was brought back to earth by Lizzie's shocked scream and yell of, "Ms. Rarity! You promised!" Rarity chuckled and instructed her "You have to do it slowly, darling." Leaving Fluttershy back to her thoughts..._I wonder what he's doing right now...?_

**[At Sweet Apple Acres]  
**"Ok, Applejack. You know the rules?" "Yep." They both looked at eachother. "One," he said, "Two", she said to him, then the both at the same time yelled "THREE. PINKIE!" She popped her head up from grazing and called out "hello!"  
The goal of the game is to get Pinkie to come to you. The loser has to get the boards. Why couldn't they just ask Pinkie Pie to get a board? Well, apparantly, they aren't that smart. They started bargaining with her, promises of hanging out, fun pranks, even making a cake. Brandon almost got her. He almost won! But then Spike came running to them, "Brandon! Brandon! the Princess has a letter for you!" He snatched the letter, and read it. "Spike, get everypony. Tell them to meet me at the library." He nodded and ran off with Applejack and Pinkie Pie to gather the rest of them.

_Dear Brandon,  
We may have found two of the elements: Kindness and Loyalty. They're being held by one of Magnus' henchmen, Jeremiah. Get these as soon as possible. The elements are the KEY to saving Equestria! I have faith in you. My sister and I will continue to watch over you.  
-Princess Celestia_


	11. Chapter 11

_Brandon,  
We have found Jeremiah's location. I have one of my best soldiers meeting you at the rendevouz. Bring Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash with you, only they may handle their own Element. Jeremiah is ruthless and dangerous. Be careful. My sister and I will continue to pray that you complete the task at hoof.  
-Princess Celestia_


	12. Chapter 12

"God, I hate patrolling the midnight hour," One soldier said to his buddy. The other soldier seemed disinterested, "Oh. Why is that?" "Because it's freakin' FREEZING this time of year! Why the hell did we decide to invade during the winter?" They just kept their patrol going, one talking, the other automatically replying. "Hey! I think I see something!" he said to his buddy, who replied with, "oh, that's cool." It's obvious he wasn't really paying mind to anything his friend had to say. The talkative one shouted to the figure "Stop right there!" The figure was actually Brandon, wearing an Inimicus armor he 'borrowed' off of one of them. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were in front of them. "Sorry, sir! I got lost when I saw these two trying to fly in." The chattery soldier took excitement to this, "Whoa! Peter, look! Holy shit! ACTUAL pegasuseses. Where'd you find these two?" he asked, trying to get a closer look at the strange creatures. The other soldier took a closer look at their 'recruit.' "Hey, rookie. Is that a bullet hole on your chest plate?" Brandon forgot about the bullet hole on the suit, it belonged to a previous owner. "Uh...yes sir! I...was cleaning my gun and forgot it was loaded. Which ended up in a bullet hole." The excited soldier kept poking at the pegasi, "Hey! Can you talk to me, pretty girl? Come on!" Rainbow Dash was annoyed with this guy's hand in her face, and wanted to say something really crude to him, but didn't want to encourage him.  
Peter, however, thought Brandon's excuse was strange. "Stay right here, I'm gonna have to call this in."  
Brandon pretended it didn't bother him, "No problem. We'll stay right here. Take all the time you need-NOW!" He yelled at his companions, who tackled the two soldiers while Brandon finished them off with a couple of swift kicks.  
Rainbow Dash sighed of relief, "Finally! That guy wouldn't stop seeing if my mane was dyed." Brandon chuckled at how uncomfortable that made her.  
Fluttershy seemed excited, "Wow! That was really easy!" The Paladin looked at her and simply said "Shy, once you've been in this business as long as I have, you'll realize nothing like this is easy."

_Dear Magnus,  
This is a request from the ruler of Equestria, and my final offer for peace. We are a peaceful and accepting race. You are not. That's why the Queen banished you to earth, because all you know how to do is kill yourselves slowly. We will gladly accept you with open arms, but we know you will deny our offer. Which is why I am requesting you back down and go back home. If you do, then your soldiers can go back home and see their families, you can continue doing good for your empire, and you may live. If you do not, then you will perish. There is no middle line. We may be peaceful, but that does not mean weak. We have a very strong military force, and may I add some pretty big help. I hope your next letter states that you are moving out and going back to the world you call Earth. If it says anything else, then you better prepare for your final hours._

_-Princess Celestia_

After making their way past 30 armed checkpoints, they snuck their way in, and found something in a couple of the prison cells, two familiar faces that Brandon recognized. "Wow! Ashford, you're alive!" Paladin Washington exclaimed, excited to see that his friend was ok. Ayala smiled, like she sort of knew that a simple explosion wouldn't kill him. Washington had dark hair, mid-length, and a pretty normal face. He just looked normal. Ayala was a brunette, kept in a ponytail so her hair doesn't get into her face. "Wash! Ayala! Holy crap! I thought you two died in the explosion! I'll get you out in just a sec," he told his friend, "VI," talking to his AI companion, "How may I assist?" "I need you to crack this passcode. Get Wash and Ayala out of there." VI already knew the instructions, "Affirmative. Give me a moment." And just like that, the passcode was uploaded, and the two Paladins were free. Ayala looked at the pegasi next to her long-time friend, "What are these things?" Brandon didn't feel like explaining right now, "Listen, it's crazy. I know, but we're in their world. Pegasi, Unicorns, and Ponies talk, I'll give you the in-detail description talk when we succeed. Now, have you seen any Jewel looking things of some sort? Kind of like a necklace?" Paladin Washington looked at his superior, Ayala, and said "No. If it's important, then they probably took it to the lowest levels of the building. Try the bottom floor. What's going on?"  
Brandon decided to give them the details on the mission, they're good soldiers, they can help. "I'm after these things called the Elements of Harmony. They're really important, and I need help. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy have the spirit of these Elements, so they can only handle them. I've already got 3 guys outside who are working their way in. You can search for a way out." The two Paladins just looked at eachother again, "We...think we might have an idea. We'll see you later, ok?"

_Message to: Princess Celestia,  
Princess, I do not give a DAMN how peaceful your kind is. We know war, and we are not above proving it. Conquering your nation is one of Patensia's many steps into becoming a world-wide super power. With that power, the emperor will give me evidence to help me solve my wife's murder. I loved her very much, and now all I have left is being a citizen in the glorious empire of Patensia. I know Brandon and Elizabeth are fighting for you, but that doesn't matter. If you do not surrender, then you will die. There is no other option.  
-Magnus Ashford_

The three entered a room, with enough security measures to give a veteran tech expert a run for his money. Luckily, they have VI, who made those security measures as simple as cutting kite string. What they saw on the two pedestals was exactly what they were hoping for.  
"There they are!" Rainbow Dash shouted, excited the mission was coming to an end. The two pegasi flew up and collected their Elements. Now all they had to do was search for a way to get out."

"In the name of our glorious emperor, Septimus Di Patensia, I order you to stop!"


	13. Chapter 13

"I told you, stop, or face the harsh judgement of our Holy Empire!" a voice said. Brandon knew who it was, he knew the man. Jeremiah Kenward, his dad's right hand man and chief ass-kisser...also a big suspect in his mother's murder. Brandon remembers many times as a child when he was searching for his father or mother and Jeremiah brushed him off, saying that adults are at work.  
"Jeremiah Kenward! It's so good to see you again. Do you remember me?" Brandon turned around to look Jeremiah in the face, nothing changed. Jeremiah still had short, black hair, tall, and that ridiculous dark purple suit. His dark, green eyes apparantly couldn't remember the face in front of him. "No. Nor do I care. You are enemies of the empire and will be treated as such. Hand over all your weapons before my men arrive and we'll let you live. Put your hands and/or hooves behind your head." The two pegasi complied, but Brandon didn't budge. Instead he made Jeremiah remember him. "You don't remember me? Look closer, think harder." Jeremiah looked into Brandon's tired blue eyes, his blond hair going to his jaw, and tried to match those features to someone he knew. Then he gasped, the look of horror on his face. He thought the boy and girl died within a week! "Oh! You do remember me, Jeremiah? The look on your face says it all. I believe the last time you saw me, you kicked my sister and I out of our home, all because father complied with His Majesty's order. I was hoping to be able to see you again. Now you can answer my question. The one I've been wanting to ask you for a long time," The Paladin said as he approached him, holding a handgun, pointed at the ass-kisser. Brandon looked at Jeremiah and smiled, not a heartfelt smile, but a 'I am going to destroy you' type of smile. "Who killed my mother?"

_Dear Luna,  
I tried talking him down but it didn't work. Magnus is too stubborn and patriotic to back down, even though I told him he'd be heading toward his death. I need you to gather up all the soldiers you can get, Equestria is about to enter it's first real war since the Griffin Cataclysm, 200 years ago. If worse comes to worse, then we evacuate all of the smaller towns and move the residents to the major towns, where there will be military protection. It's not the best strategy, but it's the best I can offer now. Hurry and find the location of the Elements of Harmony. I don't want to be negative, but our foes are more technologically advanced than we are. There's no real way to say this, but even with our magic...we could lose. We need to pull this off. For our mother. For our subjects. For the world! Stay safe, little sister.  
-Celestia_

"Girls," he told his team of pegasi, "Go get the Elements of Harmony. I have some business to attend to." They looked worried, it was a side of Brandon that he didn't want them to see. The two reluctantly flew off and grabbed their respective Elements of Harmony, Fluttershy for Kindness and Rainbow Dash for Loyalty.

Jeremiah was shaking, showing a big coward behind that mask of a calm and collected man, "Brandon! I don't know anything on who killed Lady Mercia! I swear! Your father and I have nothing to do with it! It was the work of terrorists! I SWEAR!" Brandon wouldn't have that. He grabbed Jeremiah by the collar and looked him in the eyes. "Do you have any idea what it's like to hear multiple gunshots, wondering if fighting was going on between the house workers? Do you have any idea what it's like to see your mother laying on the stairs, blood pouring out of her body, eyes wide and dead with fear and shock?! You look me in the damn eyes before you tell me another lie, and you better know that there is a bullet waiting for you, depending on your answer."  
Jeremiah knew that Brandon would kill him. He killed Cornelius, a prince! Brandon wouldn't give a damn about a noble like him. He had a chance to come clean, and he took it. He screamed, worried, "I told you I don't know! But I know who might! Princess Maria! She was the last one seen with your mother, right? She can tell you who did it! You have to believe me! I swear on my life!" The Princess thought that this guy was ruthless? Wow. "It's ok," he said calmly, "I believe you. But..." a look of even more panic overtook his face, "I can't allow you to live. You might spoil my surprise visit to Maria." Brandon pressed the gun up against the noble's head. "Brandon! Please! Young Lord! You can't do this! This is murder! We may not be blood, but we're still family at heart, right!?" Brandon gave him a dark look. "Sorry, Jeremiah. But you would do the same thing in my position." "BRANDON. NO!"  
"When the gate keeper to Hell asks who sent you, tell them that I sent you. You might get special treatment."  
He squeezed the trigger, forgetting that Fluttershy was standing right behind him.


	14. Chapter 14

Jeremiah fell to the ground. Dead instantly. Fluttershy was traumatized at what she just saw. _Did he just...? Why? I love him...but, I can't believe he did that. Is he really a monster?_

Rainbow Dash tried her best to stop him from shooting any pony else. Specifically, stop him from shooting HER. "Hey! Let's all put down our weapons and not shoot any one else we know from our childhood!" She spoke to him the way you would speak to a kid on a tempter tantrum, or a crazy person. He was annoyed at her inability to take things seriously. "Don't talk to me like that! He would've killed us." "Riiight! Right! It's allright." "Stop patronizing me." It took both of them a while to realize Fluttershy was crying. Brandon went to go check on her, he did just do something horrible right in front of her.

"Hey, beautiful. I'm sorry you had to see that," he said to her as he wrapped his arms around her neck. She looked at him, tears in her eyes. "You...you murdered him. You didn't even think about it. Just...shot him." Brandon looked her in eyes and kissed her on the nose, "That guy was a bad man. He would've killed us, and killed a lot of other people. If there was another way, I'd have done it. He was too dangerous to keep alive. I'm not a monster." He said as he kissed her, full on the lips. She just nodded, tears still coming out of her eyes.  
"Fluttershy, I lov-"

"LET'S GO! MOVE! MOVE! MOVE! I HEARD A GUNSHOT IN HERE. MOVE YOUR ASSES." A loud voice yelled from behind the door, along with the rumble of hundreds of footsteps, even the sounds of weapons being checked.

_Dear Celestia,  
We don't have enough time! You're giving me a week to prepare for full out WAR. This is too much, sister! Try and keep negotiatons going! WE. DON'T. HAVE. ENOUGH. TIME.  
-Luna_

The doors opened, revealing some two hundred soldiers being led in by one guy, "Jeremiah is dead! You killed him! Guards! Have your weapons ready! This guy is too dangerous to live! READY? AIM! FI-"  
Suddenly a loud roar erupted from somewhere in the building. Few have heard that roar before and lived. The roar came from a dragon. What the hell?  
Rainbow Dash screamed, "A dragon!"  
The soldiers looked confused...like they didn't call the dragon in.  
"Don't mind it. It's just Crimson throwing a fit again-" Almost as if on cue, a red dragon crashed down in the middle of the Inimicus and the heroes. The strange thing was WHO was on the dragon. Brandon's Paladin friends, Wash and Ayala, and the three Equestrian soldiers they met in the woods.  
Brandon was amazed, "How the hell did you get a DRAGON?" Ayala yelled back, "We found this guy being poked and prodded! He volunteered!"  
Fluttershy recognized this as the dragon that almost covered Equestria in smoke. He gave Rainbow Dash a nasty look.  
"Climb on! He's giving free rides!" Shining Armor yelled to them.

_Dear Luna,  
We have to MAKE time. We're still unsure about the number of Elements they've recovered so far. Our subject's LIVES are on the line! We promised mother that we would protect our country, and that is what I need you to do! A week is plenty of time to protect our cities on the border. We promised mother on her death bed that this country wouldn't fall into harm. I am to keep that promise, with or without you.  
-Celestia_

The crew rode in on the dragon...everyone taking a small nap, they all deserved it, since it was a sorta tiring flight to Ponyville. Heck, it took them 3 hours to walk there. A fifteen minute nap felt ok. If only Fluttershy could sleep. Brandon scooted to her, "What's wrong? We got the Elements, and everything turned out ok!" Fluttershy tried to make an excuse as to why she couldn't nap, "I...the dragon's scales are hard." "Well, you can lay on me if you want," he smiled at her. She gave a shy, "Ok," and layed her head on her boyfriend's chest. _He's so sweet to me. But, back there...he was so...mean._  
Brandon kissed her on the forehead, "close your eyes for fifteen minutes, Shy." She sighed, trying to forget the man that Brandon shot. Fluttershy was so happy to have him, but was so confused on how he felt about her.  
"Fluttershy, there was something I wanted to say back at the base."  
"What is it?"  
"I love you."  
She blushed, just that little phrase helped her understand how he felt.  
"I love you too."  
And they kissed, and he held her hoof all the way back home.


	15. Chapter 15

_To Magnus,  
We have just received news that one of your bases have been burnt to the ground. One of your henchmen died, as well. I warned you to back off and go home, but now you will face the full force of my army if these acts of aggression continue._

_-Princess Celestia_

The gang sat at a table in Sugarcube Corner, celebrating last night's victory. Twilight Sparkle used her magic to raise a glass of punch, "To us! Each and every one of us will soon become the saviors of Equestria!" Every pony and person soon raised their glasses with her, and drank their fruit punch. Shining Armor and his squad had to return to Canterlot to report to the Princesses. The soon-to-be saviors all had a victorious smile planted on their faces.

Mrs. Cake walked toward their table, a tray of cupcakes on her head, when she noticed the 'new addition'. "Brandon! How come you have introduced me to your little sister, yet? She is adorable!" Brandon looked around, he hasn't had a lot of time to introduce Lizzie to the other members of the community, he only found out she was alive 3 days ago. Even if he had an excuse, Mrs. Cake obviously wasn't listening, her attention was completely focused on Lizzie, "What's your name, sweet heart?" Lizzie loved the attention, "I'm Elizabeth, but you can call me Lizzie," she said, soaking up Cupcake's attention like a sponge. Strangely she wasn't paying any mind to Paladin Washington and Holy Knight Ayala. Wash didn't mind either, he just kept asking Fluttershy questions. "So, you can really fly? Like a bird?" Curious just as anyone else. Fluttershy responded to his questions with answers, even stuff as ridiculous as, "Do your animals talk, too?" when VI asked to speak to Brandon alone.  
"Paladin Ashford, I have an inquiry." "Uh, ok. Go ahead." VI looked confused, which is odd for an AI, "It is about behavior. You have not accomplished your task, and yet you celebrate. Why is that?" "I don't really have an answer for that, VI. It's just a way to be happy."

Just then, Spike ran into the bakery, with another urgent look on his face. "Twilight! They found three more elements! Laughter, Generosity, and Honesty!" Twilight look excited, "What about Magic and Courage?" He gave her a sorta sorrowful look, "Sorry. No mention of that." Twilight looked dissapointed, but she knew it was coming.  
Brandon knew what this meant, "Wait! So, I have to get back those three elements with...Pinkie Pie?" Applejack didn't seem to care, "What's wrong with that?" "She's sweet but...she's not really...bright?" They looked at Pinkie Pie, who thought it would be a fun idea to try and juggle freshly made cupcakes, her actions weren't really helping her cause. Twilight looked at Brandon, "Well, you don't have a choice. Only she can handle the Element of Laughter, remember?" "Right...Wash, Ayala, you helping?"  
The Holy Knight spoke, "Ash, you're an enemy of the nation...I could get in a lot of trouble for doing this...but I'm in." Wash spoke up, "me too. We'll work on an extraction plan."

"Good. Let's pack our bags."


	16. Chapter 16

Brandon packed some stuff, a spare change of clothes, a couple of knives, his trusty handgun, putting all of it in his backpack, while Fluttershy fed Angel his lunch. She questioned him on all of the things he was taking with him, "Did you take your knife?" "Yes." "What about some food? Water?" "Yes," he answered, just a little bit annoyed. Fluttershy continued on, "Spare clothes? Did you get your gun?" "Yes, Fluttershy, I have everything I need. Besides, I'm not leaving until morning, so if I forgot something, I would notice it, and pack it up," Brandon told her, hopefully finalizing her questions. Shy didn't realize how nagging she came of, "Sorry, I just want to make sure you're ok. I couldn't live with myself if something happened because you didn't have what you needed." Brandon decided to change topics, "Where's Lizzie?" Fluttershy answered, "She went to bed early," Lizzie had been staying in the 'guest room.' Which used to be Brandon's room, who now sleeps in the same bed with Fluttershy, but before, it was a bed that Fluttershy used for sick, larger animals, like wolves, large birds, bear cubs or whenever the Cutie Mark Crusaders decided to spend the night again. Brandon zipped up his backpack and looked at his girlfriend, "I guess I should go to bed, too," he kissed her and made his way upstairs.

_To Brandon,  
I hear that you've been handling yourself. My sister has found the location of the Elements of Laughter, Generosity, and Honesty. These elements are very important, so expect a lot of resistance, I seriously doubt another dragon will save the day. I don't know much about who's leading this operation, but the base is a mountain. Yes, you read that right. It __**IS **__a mountain. The directions are enclosed in this letter. Luna will meet you there tomorrow at noon. The fate of Equestria, and the world, rest on you and your friends' shoulders.  
-Princess Celestia_

The couple was in bed, but only one was fast asleep. Fluttershy was in what some may call 'sleep limbo.' You're tired, your eyes are closed, you're almost fast asleep, but some part of your brain won't let you. "Brandon?" she called, trying to wake him up, she couldn't just sit here alone. "Brandon?" She said again, this time poking him with her hoof. "Brandon," she tried once again, this time putting her front legs on his chest. No response. Fluttershy then proceeded to put her mouth close to his ear, "Brandon!" she semi-shouted. "Wh-What, who took my Rapidash?" He was still apparantly dreaming, then he snapped awake, "Oh. Something wrong, Shy?" Hoping she ignored anything about his nerdy Pokemon dream. She meekly smiled at him, "I...I'm scared you won't come back." Brandon was confused at what she meant, "What, like leave you? I wouldn't do that, I love you." She smiled and kissed him, "I love you too, but that's not what I meant. I meant that I'm afraid you...won't be ABLE to come back," from the look in her eyes, he knew what she meant. "Shy, I'm not going to die. I'll be fine. I promise, ok?" "Don't promise me that dumb, 'eat a thousand needles if I lie' promise, ok?" Brandon smiled, "it's just as good as a Pinkie promise."

She laughed, and finally went to sleep, her mind at ease.

Brandon was worried that one day he might not be able to keep that promise.


	17. Chapter 17

Brandon was remembering the night his mother was killed, reviewing all he knew. The amount of bullet holes on the wall and in Lady Mercia led him to believe there was more than one shooter. One thing he couldn't wrap his head around, though, _Why kill mother? She didn't hurt anybody. Sure, she was a noble, but she constantly donated to charity and as far as I know, she didn't hurt anyone. Maybe they were trying to send a message to my dad? Maybe mother got involved in something that I don't know about..._

During his snowstorm of thoughts, he momentarily pair of pink hooves wrapped around his eyes. The high voice behind the hooves spoke, "Guess who?" Pinkie Pie said as she giggled. Brandon decided to play along, "Applejack," he said. Pinkie found that hilarious. Brandon has accepted the fact that there is no possible way he can figure Pinkie Pie out. Her mentality is that of a four year old, and Brandon couldn't help but love her for it. Apparently, that's the Pinkie Charm.

Rarity was wearing an outfit that she claimed was 'perfect for breaking into a mountain base'. All it is is a camouflaged robe, but he wouldn't argue with a fashionista.

Applejack kept a lookout for Luna, who is supposed to be meeting them. Every pony was busy. Washington and Ayala went to go get an 'Extraction Plan', no one really knew what they meant.

Finally, they reached the rendezvous, but Luna was nowhere to be found. Applejack was the first to come up with a reason, "Maybe she went to go scoutin' again. Ya can never have too much information, 'specially when the things you're gatherin' info on want to kill you with loud, cracklin' machines."

It soon became dark and Applejack's theory became more flawed by the moment. Rarity was upset because she got dirt on her outfit, "Where is she?! We've been waiting for hours!" Little known fact, Rarity is very impatient, especially when she's waiting in dark woods. She even began to mock the Princess, "Oh, I'm The Princess of the Night! I keep my followers waiting when they could be home reading the newest _Trotting Dead_ book, curled up with a nice glass of sparkling juice! I'm so-"

"What are you doing?" The real Princess of the Night asked. Where did she even come from? Apparently, Luna was on time, she said 12:00, and Celestia thought she meant noon.

_Your Highness,_

_We are one step closer to completing our goal. Equestria is practically a diamond mine! With all of these gems under it's surface, we will be the most powerful nation in history. That, and we can also use these horses as slaves for our empire. The land is very large, Your Highness, we will be the first nation to have an empire across universes. Just think of how well this will benefit our nation! The only problem is the Elements of Harmony. But, we have taken care of those. Your Majesty, this is the start of a glorious age for Patensia! You will also be pleased to know your daughter has arrived safely._

_-Magnus Ashford_

__"What have you got, Luna?" Brandon asked. Luna used her magic to project what she was narrating, "There are many guards, but that is to be expected. The Elements Of Harmony are at the top of the mountain, but we have no way of getting up there. I might have an idea to get us inside, but we still have to account for the many guards inside."

Brandon chambered his handgun, "This'll account for whatever trouble we run into. You just worry about getting us inside."

"There was also a woman who arrived here not too long ago. She looked very angry and regal." Brandon's eyes widened, "What did she look like? Very long, dirty blonde hair? Purple dress?" Luna nodded to every question he asked, Brandon knew who the woman was.

"We may have to take a detour, girls...I have some questions to ask an old friend."


	18. Chapter 18

After a stunning distraction by Princess Luna, which involved the imitation of a dragon, the crew was able to sneak into the mountain base. Brandon told the ponies to meet up with him later, he had some business to attend to.

Brandon walked to where Princess Maria would be in her favorite spot. Luckily, only a few guards were in his way, he took them out with ease. The Paladin opened a large door to reveal Maria sitting in a chair, watching security feed.

"You finally got here. I was getting bored," Said the girl. Maria always seemed like a dull child...her favorite hobby was watching everybody on the security cameras. Creepy. "You know me. I hate to disappoint."

Maria sighed, and looked at the monitors. "Oh, those girls you came in with found the elements." Brandon rushed to the screen, checking to see if they were in any danger.

"Hurry, Applejack!" Pinkie Pie screamed, "we found them! Hurry up!" Maria pressed the intercom, "Loemire, please send troops to the Elements Storage," she said with a sigh.  
Brandon screamed, then grabbed Maria by the shoulder and pulled her up from her seat. "Who killed my mother?" She stood in silence. "ANSWER ME," he screamed again, "You killed her, didn't you!? Was Cornelius with you?! Talk to me, dammit!" Maria gave him that same unamused look, "It wasn't me nor was it Cornelius, but it was someone in the royal family." He put the gun against her head, she showed little to no restraint. "Who did it? Tell me!" The sound of gunfire and explosions from above them broke their concentration. Maria smiled, "It looked like they got to your friends. So sorry about that," she pulled a knife to his throat, "Drop the gun." The paladin was powerless to do anything else. Maria got this crazy look in her eye, "I know exactly who killed your mother...well, I know who authorized it. Someone important. But, I'm not telling you. You're going to die knowing that your goal was just within your reach, and it got yanked away." She raised the knife up, but a loud explosion disrupted the execution. The ceiling crashed down to their level. The ponies were ok! How did they get the floor to blow down to where Brandon was? It was the soldiers that were after them that looked in a bad shape. Brandon used Maria's confusion to try and get the knife away from her. He tripped her, and pulled out his own. Both of them kept trying to stab eachother, blocking eachother's stabs with their own knife, swinging their weapons, blocking them, all going into one pretty badass knife fight. In the battle, Maria managed to stab Brandon in the arm.

Maria almost finished Brandon off, but thankfully, Applejack bucked a rock in Maria's face, knocking her back. Brandon got right back up and grabbed Maria by the throat.  
"Answer EVERYTHING. Who authorized my mother's death?" Maria was struggling to get the words out, his grip was tight. "It was His Majesty, Septimus Di Patensia." Brandon didn't look surprised, just angry. "Why? Why did he do it?!" Maria chuckled, "He needed to cover something. Haven't you ever noticed that Magnus and you look nothing alike? He has dark hair, you have blond hair! He has brown eyes, you have blue! Look at us! It's like looking in a mirror! You and me, the same features, we look just like father! Doesn't it make sense? Father had an affair with Lady Mercia, that resulted in you being born. He ordered a group to kill your mother and make it look like the work of terrorists. He was going to get you next, but Jeremiah proposed that you'd be banished instead. Magnus isn't your father! Ashford isn't your real surname! Your real name is Brandon Di Patensia! You share royal blood! You are an offspring of the Emperor," she started laughing crazily. It seems like Maria finally snapped. He let go of Maria, who dropped to the ground, coughing. Brandon was shocked by the news..._I'm royalty...? So...Septimus is behind all of this...? _Maria picked up her knife, smiling, showing all of her teeth. She laughed as she said, "Well. Looks like you're the final heir, brother," she placed the knife towards her stomach. Brandon realized what she was about to do, "Maria! Wait!" But it was too late, the knife had already been shoved in her stomach. Crazy bitch.

Luna reminded Brandon of his injury, "We need to get that arm checked. Come on."

Brandon wasn't worried about his arm. He completely forgot how bad it was bleeding, but atleast they got the Elements they were after.

Right now, there were only 2 things he was worrying about: Septimus, that guy scared the crap out of him. And how Fluttershy would react to the fact he was stabbed.


	19. Chapter 19

"What happened to you!?" Fluttershy screamed, horrified at the site of blood soaking her boyfriend's clothes.  
Applejack and Rarity were helping him through the door and on the couch. The sun was just getting up.  
Brandon was dazed and in pain, "Hey, beautiful...can you help me a little here? It's closer here than at the hospital." Fluttershy ran to get a medical kit, she's treated hurt animals before, but never anything that was STABBED. Brandon had to give her instructions on what to do, but he was dizzy while he did it.

When he finally gained full awareness he saw Fluttershy crying. _Damn, _he thought, _I made her cry again._

"I'm sorry, Fluttershy..." he wrapped his arms around her. _She doesn't deserve this, _he thought to himself.  
She managed to talk through her sobs, "You almost died," she started yelling and sobbing, "I almost lost you! Why did you go and do that? Do you have any idea that if you'd have died, Equestria would fall, you'd leave Lizzie, and I'd be here all alone. Stop making me think you die! A few days ago you faked your death to get the drop on those bad guys, now you almost died, what was it for this time?" Brandon has never made her mad. Ever. Flutterbitch has appeared, "What was SO important that you had to risk your life for-" "I found out who killed my mother. I found out a lot of things." Fluttershy's rage dissapeared and went back into weeping, "I'm sorry... I had no idea..." Brandon forgave her, he couldn't get mad at her, no matter what. "It's ok," he held her and kissed her on the cheek, "Let's take a nap, Shy. I kind of woke you up early, sorry." She smiled, "it's fine...I'm sorry I yelled at you. Do you mind telling me who did it?"

He kissed her, it lasted for a few seconds, "Shy...I have got a crazy story to tell you."

**Well, it looks like we're nearing the end of this "book". I'm still gonna make stories based in this..."universe". Believe me, I have TONS of ideas for these guys. Just a few more chapters left! Hopefully I'll be able to finish this by the weekend and start on something new! Thank you all for the feedback! It keeps me going!**


	20. Chapter 20

It's been three days since the Elements of Laughter, Generosity, and Honesty were recovered, and Brandon hasn't gotten a letter from the Princess since. So he just continued life as usual. Well, whatever passes for "usual" around there. Cheerilee was finishing her lessons on Equestrian History, and Brandon was supposed to help, but he was fast asleep in the corner of the room, in a chair close to Sweetie Belle.  
Sweetie kept flinging paper balls and her eraser at him, trying to wake him up. No effect.  
His eyes were closed, he was gone from the world, just snoring away. Some sharp pain hit his head, and woke him up instantly, he looked around to see who hit him, and saw Sweetie Belle trying to look innocent, but failing horribly.  
He whispered to her, "Why did you hit me?" "Because Ms. Cheerilee asked you to grade the quizzes half an hour ago!" Brandon completely forgot, "Oh crap! Where are they?" "Don't worry! Scootaloo graded them!" Red flag. Brandon grabbed the papers, "Sweetie, how come you, Applebloom, and Scootaloo all got A's, but every pony else got F's? Even Scrabble?" Sweetie gave him a pretty crappy excuse, "It was a hard test." "It was a spelling and grammar quiz! Scrabble's special talent is spelling and grammar, how could he get an F?" the little filly gave him a sad look, "We're sorry." He didn't mean to chew her out like that, "It's fine, you graded it in pencil, so I can just erase it. Don't try sabotage again, ok? Keep in mind that I know your parents, and it might come up in a conversation the next time I see you do something like this." Sweetie's face looked even sadder. Brandon patted her on the head to let her know everything was ok, when Cheerilee noticed that the school's assistant finally woke up, "Brandon," she said in that cheery voice, "how are those quizzes coming?"  
Brandon quickly grabbed a pen and started correcting the grades, "Almost done, Ms. Cheerilee!"

_To Septimus Di Patensia,  
We have a slight problem, sir. The Elements have been taken from us. They have five, we have one, we don't even know where the seventh one is! And there was an explosion during the raid on our mountain base, Outpost 14-C. Regrettably, Princess Maria Di Patensia did not survive. I have reason to believe that Brandon did this. The Equestrian Military is still disorganized at the moment. We must strike NOW! My deepest apologies for your daughter, and we are bringing her body back to the Homeland, but you must focus on the task at hand! You promised me that if I accomplish this, then you will give me all withheld evidence from Lady Mercia's murder! Equestria can fall by tomorrow afternoon if we strike NOW!  
-Magnus Ashford_

"Where is he?" Lizzie asked, sitting at a table with Fluttershy. "He promised he'd be here! He promised he wouldn't be late!" Lizzie kept rambling, pretty mad that her brother was late for the lunch he promised he'd attend. Fluttershy made small efforts to calm her down, "He'll be here any moment. Maybe he found something out about that last element. We can order while we wait for him, I don't think he'd mind." Almost as if he was on cue, Brandon rushed to their table, and sat in the middle chair, next to his girlfriend and his little sister. "Where have you been?" Lizzie interrogated, cranky and impatient from hunger. He looked at his sister, "Sorry. I had to grade papers," he kissed Fluttershy, who smiled at him.  
They ate their lunch and talked about their day, nothing real exciting happened to any of them. Well, nothing they could talk about.  
Brandon loved these moments. His little sister and his girlfriend in one place, talking and chatting with eachother.

The PA came on again, but it wasn't the Mayor of Ponyville, or Magnus, like Brandon expected.

"This is a broadcast from the Canterlot Castle. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna has given up the throne. You will bow before my Empire or die. I now control Equestria. All hail Septimus Di Patensia! ALL HAIL PATENSIA!"


	21. Chapter 21

After that broadcast, Brandon and the others met in the library, planning on what to do next. Brandon and Twilight talked for a moment, and they finally came up with a plan. Twilight spoke, "Ok. We're still missing two Elements of Harmony: Magic and Courage. Without those two, we might as well throw ourselves in front of a wagon. But, luckily we have two perfect scouts. Wash, Ayala, I want you to go to Canterlot and spy on the Emperor, see if you can find anything." Ayala agreed immidiatley, but Wash seemed a little...uneasy, "W-wait, why are we spying on the scariest man in our world?" But he couldn't get out of it. Twilight continued on, "We can't do anything until we have all of the elements. While you two go scouting for the Element of Magic, the rest of us will research on the Element of Courage. It's the only chance we have..." she said grimly, but every one knew it was true.

They took home a couple of books. Brandon and Fluttershy were reading a couple of old scrolls that Twilight took from the Ancient Canterlot Archives, but there was nothing. They sat in silence while Lizzie scribbled on paper. "Fluttershy, how did you find the Element of Kindness?" Brandon asked, just out of curiosity. Fluttershy thought for a moment, she didn't know exactly how to say it. "Well, there was a manticore that was attacking my friends. Every pony was about to attack it, but I've worked with a lot of animals, so I know how it feels and why it feels it. Despite the danger, I pulled the splinter out of its paw. That's why it was attacking, not because it was bad." Brandon was amazed, how come she never told him this? Lizzie jumped up, "That's it!" she screamed with glee. "What's it?" "That's how you get the Element of Courage! Fluttershy showed a lot of kindness toward the Manticore, so you show a lot of courage! What's your biggest fear?" Brandon looked around, not wanting to admit the fact that he was afraid of..."Spiders..." he said with great shame, "Does that mean I have to kill a spider?" It was a good idea...until they delved into it. Fluttershy tried to help, "Maybe it's not you have to kill a spider, maybe it's you have to stop fearing them!" Brandon still wasn't sure. Could being fearless of spiders REALLY be the key to stopping the terror over Equestria? Doubtful. Fluttershy didn't care. It was a shot in the dark and she took it. "I know some spiders! They can teach you how not to be afraid of them!"

Brandon sighed, "This is the stupidest idea I've ever heard...but maybe it'll lead to something."


	22. Chapter 22

"Go on! Tell him you're not afraid of him!" Fluttershy said to Brandon, who was looking at a spider on a tree stump. It was taunting him. It's just a garden spider, they're not that scary.  
"I'm not doing this!" He yelled at them. Lizzie tried to support her brother, "Come on! THIS IS FOR EQUESTRIA!"  
Brandon looked at the harmless garden spider, "I'm not afraid of you." "With feeling!" "I'm not afraid of you!" "MORE!" "I'M NOT AFRAID OF YOU, YOU LITTLE PISSANT!" "Less feeling!" "I'm not afraid of you!" "Good job!"  
The two ran to Brandon and Fluttershy asked, "well, feel any different?" Brandon thought for a moment, "No, I just yelled at a spider. If anything, I feel stupid." Lizzie shouted, "That's because you're still afraid of them! You haven't changed at all! Mother always had to kill a spider when it was in the room."  
That word unleashed a chain of thoughts. _Mother..._He remembered how terrified he was after his mother was killed, how he was afraid to talk to anybody because they might assassinate him, then he became terrified of who did it, who might come after him...it all made sense.  
He wasn't scared of spiders...  
He was afraid of his mother's killer!

"Girls, go get everypony else...I think I may have figured everything out..."

Gathering up the Mane 6 plus Lizzie, Spike, and Brandon, they finally hatched out their plan.  
"What!? You're sayin' we're goin' after him? NOW?!" Applejack screamed, obviously having a problem with the plan. "Yeah," he replied. "But what about the elements of magic and courage? We can't do anything without them." Brandon chuckled, "I know where it is. It's the last and most important one, so it's going to be with the most important person in the most secure place. In the Canterlot Castle with Septimus Di Patensia." Rarity butted in, "But that's just a hunch! We don't know that for sure!" Brandon knew, it wasn't a normal hunch

"Everyone, ever since I can remember I have been lied to, cheated, manipulated and left for dead. All because of His Majesty. I hated life, but I kept living because I had my little sister to protect. She was who I lived for. Then I thought she died, I had nothing left to live for...I just wanted it to stop. To stop the pain of living with these awful memories. But you guys...I didn't trust you, at all. I had actually planned to kill Fluttershy if she tried anything funny," Fluttershy responded with a worried look, "Some hunch told me to trust you guys, that you were being genuinely nice. That hunch is what led me to finding my sister, finding the truth, and even finding someone I love...deeply," Fluttershy's worried expression formed into a blushing smile. "All of you have been so nice to me, and trusted me completely. I have complete trust in all of you, and I swear I would never screw you guys over for anything. If you wait here, then you might as well watch as Equestria burns to the ground. I'm going regardless. Who's coming with me?"

Fluttershy gained a confident look, she stood next to him, indicating she was going. Lizzie followed her. Twilight still wasn't sure, "If you go, then there's no telling that you'll come back! Just think for a second, Brandon. It's reckless and just plain idiotic! I'm pretty sure if we just keep researching-" Applejack interrupted, every pony was beside Brandon except for Twilight, "Twilight, Brandon has kicked some major flank ever since he got here! Ain't reckless how we always get our doin' done? These Patennians want to mine our home, and make us slaves for their empire! They don't think we're tough enough to handle a big fight! They think we're just pretty ponies with ribbons in our manes. Well, THIS pretty pony is ready to show them there humans just what an angry hoof can do to some one's face!" The group erupted into a round of cheers.

Twilight looked blank, "This is the dumbest thing I've ever heard of...but I'm in."

Pinkie Pie started another round of cheers, until Rainbow Dash explained, "But how are we going to get there? Septimus closed the train stations and the Paladins took the jeep!" They all pondered the thought for a moment...until Twi had an idea. "Pinkie! Do you still have that hot air balloon?"

"Of course! Why?"

"Because, we're going to Canterlot."

**Stay tuned for the finale tonight!**


	23. Chapter 23

"Wash, see anything?" Ayala asked. They were both scoping out Canterlot Castle, but didn't see anything real important. "Nothing," he answered, "Just some patrols. They have this place locked down tight, Ayala, there's no way we're getting in. We just don't have enough people."

"We're not people, but we might be better," a voice called from behind them. The Paladins turned around to see the voice was Shining Armor, accompanied with Lieutenant Miles and Corporal Steel! They were happy to see them, but the odds still weren't in their favor. "Five soldiers won't get through an entire army. We would hardly make a dent." The soldiers kept that victorious smile on their faces, then an alicorn, pink coat and a multi-colored mane stepped forward, and spoke "You're right, five soldiers wouldn't make a difference," she motioned for the paladins to follow her, "But a couple of hundred, all fueling with rage that their home is in danger, might save Equestria. I, Princess Cadence, show you the Equestrian Army!"

The paladins looked over the hill, and saw about 300 Ponies. A mix of Pegasi, unicorns, and earth ponies, all waiting for a chance to reclaim their homes.

They raised their weapons high and stormed Canterlot Castle, igniting their first war in 200 Years.

_To: Magnus Ashford_

_I congratulate you! You have done your country proud! As promised, I have provided the information about your wife's death in this message. I hope when you find the truth, you'll make the right choice. _

_-Septimus Di Patensia_

"Flap those wings, Fluttershy!" Rainbow Dash yelled. "I'm trying! They're all so heavy!"

The non-flyers were in Pinkie's hot-air balloon, strangely no one questioned why she had one. "I can see it," Twilight shouted. Applejack yelled to their pilots, "C'mon girls, start landin'!" Rainbow gave a brave chuckle, "Starting to land!" Rarity had to ask, "Do you know how to land a hot air balloon?" Rainbow Dash just smiled, "Sure, we just land how we usually land, right?" Lizzie screamed, "oh crap! Brace for impact!"

_To: Septimus Di Patensia _

_I have nothing but hate for you, sir. First you [censored] my wife, then you kill her? Not only that, but you're the reason I banished my children! I am a fool! I will right this wrong, Septimus, I swear on Lady Mercia's GRAVE, that I will kill you_

_-Magnus Ashford_

The battle for Canterlot was long, but...the ponies were winning! Their combination of spells and teamwork gave them the upper hand against the Inimicus. The Paladins were the leaders, their tactics and special training made attacking a battalion seem like nothing. The battle was almost won. Then a strange, dark knight appeared in front of them. Standing around Twenty feet tall with two jagged swords in each of it's hands. It's red glowing eyes pointed directly at the Paladins.

Ayala shouted, "This monster will be taken care of by myself and Paladin Washington! Now take the castle back! This is for your families! If you do not succeed, then everyone who died today will have died for NOTHING! Honor your fallen brothers! Take the castle!" The rallied troops all went inside, leaving the Paladins to fight the Dark Knight.

"Ready to handle this, Wash?" Ayala said, armor primed, weapon drawn. No response. "Wash? Paladin Washington, answer me!" He stammered, and glared back at his opponent, "Yeah, yeah, sorry. Just...is that a pink hot air balloon?"

The heroes were going to come in hot, at one point Rainbow Dash lost control resulting in a pretty bad crash. They almost went off the cliff!

They all got up, seemingly ok. "Rainbow Dash! You ruined my hot air balloon!" Pinkie Pie yelled, upset at the loss of what seemed to be a long time friend. Rainbow Dash didn't even care, she just untied the rope she used to tug them with off her waist, "Screw it. I'll buy you another one!" That instantly cheered Pinkie up, "Ooh! Yeah! Screw it!" She used her face to throw the hot air balloon off the cliff. Brandon checked on Fluttershy, who still had the rope on her waist, but wasn't attached to the balloon. "You ok, beautiful?" he asked as he kissed her and untied the rope. She blushed and muttered a "mmhmm."  
Ayala yelled, dodging the Knight's swings by jumping, and shooting his armor, "Hey! We could use some help!"

The crew grabbed a weapon and charged. They actually managed to land a couple of hits, but somehow the Knight's armor kept regenerating. "Brandon!" Twilight yelled, "Look at it's necklace! I think it's wearing the Element of Magic as a necklace! If you can get it, then maybe we can stop this monster from regenerating and beat this thing!" Brandon nodded, he put his helmet on, and activated VI. "VI, Activated the Speed unit!" VI had a great look of worry overcome on his face, "But, Paladin Ashford, the temporary speed unit has not yet come out of beta. Your armor may not be equipped to handle this-" "Over ride! Acknowledge last directive!...Please!" "...Complying. Activating now."  
Brandon felt his suit filled with power..."Uh...yeah, I'm kind of having first thoughts about this." Rainbow Dash looked at him, she'd just been swatted by the knight, "Did you have a first one?" "Not really. Hey, can you distract this thing for me?" "I guess so," she took off.  
Brandon rushed off, moving as fast, if not FASTER than Rainbow Dash, the Knight tried to swing his swords at the Paladin, but he was way too fast, he jumped off the blades, shot a couple of holes in the armor, and snatched off the Element of Magic. The Paladin pulled out his knife, given to him by his mother, and stabbed the Dark Knight between the eyes, making it dissapear in a cloud of dark fog.

Twilight screamed with glee and gave each pony their respective element, then placing the Element of Magic on her head, "Brandon! You did it! That's all of the Elements of Harmony!...All except for-"  
"I'm working on it," he said, "we still have the emperor. That's where the element of courage is...let's finish this.

**The next chapter will be up right after this one! There's also an aftermath coming up. I'm seriously going to finish typing this all up by tonight.**


	24. Chapter 24 Conclusion

The Elements of Harmony, Lizzie, and the Paladins all walked into the throne room, where His Majesty, Septimus Di Patensia, sat...but there was another person. Magnus Ashford, his handgun was pointed at the emperor.  
Septimus spoke, "It's been awhile, my son. Please dispose of Lord Ashford." Magnus snapped, **"He's not your son! You didn't raise him! I'm his father, you aren't!"**

Brandon spoke, "None of you are my family. The only family I have is Lizzie, and you both have been horrible to her."  
Septimus rose up from the throne, "I have given you everything, and you not even know it. I have permitted you to live in the palace with me, I gave you clothes, food, and a safe place to stay-"  
Brandon snapped back, "It was safe until you want someone to stay quiet! You killed her! You didn't banish her, you didn't force her to stay quiet, YOU MURDERED HER. Did she even mean anything to you!? She was our mother, you didn't even let us say goodbye! You took everything from us! I was just starting to get my life back, then you came back and messed EVERYTHING up! For what!? Your empire!?"  
Septimus started speaking, "It was necessary. I gave myself a world of my own...it's coming together quite nicely."

Brandon yelled, "NO. You don't get your own world!" he felt a sensation in his heart, "You've destroyed LIVES. Not just my life, but others as well! You've destroyed Magnus' life, Lizzie's life, that massacre you authorized, and you've destroyed Equestria's life! Everyone you are around suffers because of you!"  
Magnus yelled, **"Enough! This is for Mercia, you son of a bitch!" **He raised the handgun, only to be shot down by the Emperor himself. Magnus died instantly.  
That was the last straw, Magnus may not have been Brandon's real dad, but he was Lizzie's real dad. Brandon felt a sudden burst of power in his heart emerge from him...he felt like he could take on anything.  
"You've ruined another life! You are the scum of the earth! In your speeches you talk about equality, yet you still carry slaves! This world know equality, this world is the world where Lizzie can find happiness, but you screwed all of that up! You want to live in your own world!? How about we send you to a world where YOU'RE the only resident? You can have your own world! Make your own rules! Do what you want!"  
Septimus looked worried..."Now, Brandon, you wouldn't..." but it was too late...the Elements were already showing supreme power. Septimus thought, _Does he really have the power to do this? What's that on his chest? HE FOUND IT?_ Lo and behold, the Element of Courage, a green stone, was on his chest. It wasn't there before?  
The Elements were getting more powerful by the second, until finally a burst of light came from all of the Elements, surrounding the Emperor until he was no longer there.

The war has been won. The fighting's over.

**Stay tuned for the aftermath. If you have any questions PM me**


	25. Chapter 25 The Aftermath

"Brandon, are you coming to bed?" Fluttershy called down to her boyfriend, who was sitting on the couch typing a message. "Yeah, give me a second. I'm sending a message to Lizzie." "Ok," she kissed him on the head, "don't be long. I think I want to try something new tonight..." she tried to hint at what it is. Brandon was clueless whenever Fluttershy tried to be seductive, and he was just as clueless now. "I'm almost done." He continued typing.

_Dear Lizzie,  
Sorry that it's been awhile since I last wrote you. It's been about two months since you left to finish school. I've been looking into it and...I think you're right. This world is safe for both of us. So, is the deal still going? You finish school, Wash and Ayala keep watch over you, and when you're done, you can live here. Sure, that's a while away, but it gives us something to look foward to. Hearth's Warming Eve, or whatever it's called, is coming up soon, and I hope you'll be able to celebrate it with us. Think of it as Christmas, but a lot more patriotic than it is religious. Pinkie Pie won't let me forget that she misses you. Every pony misses you, actually. In fact, Rarity is using ME to make a dress for you the next time you come here, sorry I told you. Try to act surprised! Shy and I have been doing great, by the way. I think we have something really special. Also, I think I forgot to tell you how well Equestria kicked the Inimicus asses. The ponies only had 20 casualties. 3 of those were fatalities, sadly. I went to each of their funerals...they all had a family. It was the most heartbreaking thing I've ever seen. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna are fine, too. Shining Armor found them in the prisoner cell. Well, that's all I really have to tell you, write back soon, ok? These ponies are resilient, they keep on smiling no matter what. Remember that you have to write me before you can come here. I've got to get the Princess to open the portal to let you in. As long as you have that green gem I gave you, the portal should open for you. Promise me you won't lose that gem, ok? Big brother out.  
-Brandon _

Brandon placed the letter, along with a reminder to give it to Spike in the morning, who would give it to the Princess, who would send it to Lizzie. It was a very complicated system, but Celestia volunteered. He then went up to bed, brushed his teeth, and fell onto bed.  
Fluttershy turned to him, "Hey," she kissed him. Brandon smiled to her, "What is it you wanted to try?" Shy blushed, "You love me, right?"  
Brandon smiled, and kissed her passionatley  
"Yes, Fluttershy. I love you."

**THE END**

* * *

Well, that was a lot of fun, but we've reached the conclusion of "The Seventh Element." And it really got a lot more love than I expected. Thank you all for the support, it's really made my week.  
No, this is NOT the end of this..."series." In fact, I have TONS of ideas involving these guys. One adventure just isn't enough.  
Just give me time to roll out a new plot for these guys. Until I can finish that, though, it's all going to be some short stories. Expect a Christmas Special up soon!


End file.
